About

At Boston College, Catholic Studies began with faculty from a variety of disciplines who had been meeting under the auspices of a Jesuit Institute seminar to discuss works on Catholicism by both Catholic and non-Catholic authors. Their broad explorations of the Catholic Intellectual Tradition sparked exciting interdisciplinary conversations which led to the creation of a program of study that would include, but go beyond, the traditional subjects in which one usually encounters Catholicism (Philosophy, history, and theology), to include perspectives from the visual arts, music, literature, the social and natural sciences. In an era of globalization the face of Catholicism is changing. What will the next hundred years of Catholic social look like? How does one combine Catholicism’s historical-intellectual legacy with the political and socio-economic challenges of the post-9/11 world?

History

In the Fall of 2003, a small group of faculty from several departments began to work on a proposal for an interdisciplinary minor in Catholic Studies. The Program was approved by The Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences in the Spring of 2006 and was formally launched in the Spring of 2007. We are delighted that BC now joins what is becoming a flourishing field in both Catholic and secular universities.